Saturday, March 29, 2003

Birthday Pictures

Here are a few pictures from the surprise party Amy arranged for me. They don't do it justice, but I guess photos rarely do...

Reunion in Huntsville

Two weeks ago, Amy and I drove to Huntsville to get together with a goup of friends from my days with Campus Crusade while I was at Rice. I alluded to having photos to put online in a previous post, and here they are!

In addition to the Ofoto albumn, there are two group photos provided that you can download in high-resolution. There is a smaller copy of each (800x600) provided (First picture, Second picture), or you can go straight for the originals in all 4-Megapixels (2272x1704) if you don't mind downloading approximately 1.5 MB for each picture (First picture, Second picture).

Thursday, March 27, 2003

The Man Who Was Thursday

Some of you (yes, you in the back...) may have noticed I added a new section to the side bar of this site recently tracking the books Amy and I are reading or have read recently. I was updating this with a book I finished last night when it occurred to me that I wanted to take a moment and draw attention to it. The book is The Man Who Was Thursday, by G. K. Chesterton.

I received this book for my birthday and was intrigued enough to pick it up Tuesday night and start it. I got hooked enough that I finished it last night (please note that it is only 180 pages long). I highly recommend this book to just about anyone. Set in the early 1900's, the hero of the story is a philosopher and poet turned member of a secretive police force whose purpose it is to investigate and stop an equally secretive group that is bent on the destruction of humanity. Without going into any spoiling detail, this was a thoroughly enjoyable book that oscillated between being seemingly predictable and genuinely nightmarish. It's a short read, and the ending is just bizarre and sublime enough to leave a lasting impact. Feel free to borrow my copy! (Shipping and handling not included...)

Wednesday, March 26, 2003

Boy Meets Sidewalk

I have a great wife.

She bought me a mountain bike for my birthday.

I picked it up Monday after work.

I then proceeded to ride it.

I rode quite quickly.

Then I needed to stop to avoid hitting something, so I squeezed the brakes.

I squeezed the brakes quite firmly.

The bike stopped.

I did not.

At least not until the sidewalk made me.

Actually it was a combination of the sidewalk and my chin.

They both receive credit.

I received six stitches, lovingly delivered by my wife, also known as Dr. Bredenberg.

I have a great wife.

Tuesday, March 18, 2003

Surprise!

For those of you who don't know, Monday was my birthday. My sneaky (but altogether lovely) wife, Amy, planned a surprise birthday party to help me usher in the new decade. She did a fantastic job, and kept me completely in the dark! I've never been the subject of a surprise party before, but this one will go down in the history books. There were about 35 friends and family members hiding in the living room at my parents' house when we arrived!

I must say, it was a great birthday in every way. Amy gets full credit for the best birthday party I've ever had! Another mark of the greatness of this birthday is that I have my work cut out for me to read all of the great books I was given (including Winston Churchill's "History of the English-Speaking People", which I've already started!)

I'll post some pictures soon, along with pictures from our weekend trip to a get-together of friends in Huntsville.